


Sweetest Taboo [Bloodshot X Mass Effect 3]

by royal__indigo



Category: Bloodshot (2020 movie), Mass Effect, Mass Effect 3 - Fandom
Genre: Bloodshot - Freeform, Couldn’t help myself, I HAD to pair these two bros up together, M/M, Male Slash, Mass Effect 3
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-22
Updated: 2020-09-14
Packaged: 2021-02-28 22:01:45
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,448
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23254384
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/royal__indigo/pseuds/royal__indigo
Summary: James blew Tibbs away, they couldn’t keep their hands off of each other. Ray wanted to protect Tibbs, but Tibbs always enjoyed the thrill of danger. James was the perfect outlet for that.
Relationships: James Vega/Marcus Tibbs, Male Shepard/James Vega, Steve Cortez/Male Shepard
Kudos: 3





	1. smol macho boys

**Author's Note:**

> This is a crossover between the new movie Bloodshot and the video game Mass Effect 3, my horny drunk ass just decided to come up with this because it was on my mind last night and I started half of it up then worked on it more today. I didn’t wanna pass it up and forget all about it later. Plus, these two dudes are favorite characters of mine.

All Tibbs had to say was “stop”, but he didn’t want to stop—he wanted James and James wanted him. Tibbs loved having every inch of James inside of him—the dirty talk, the excessive cussing once James was inside of him, the cuddling after sex or before sex… all of these things made them both crazy for each other.

“I’m gonna make you squeal like a girl, Tibbs,” James said to Tibbs, as James aggressively slid in and out of Tibbs’ entrance.

Tibbs felt heat of pleasure raise in his thighs, far too intense to keep up the tough guy act for very long. Tibbs never wanted anyone to hear him ever go up several pitches being drilled by James, but James helped him get used to it the more they spent time together.

“Fuck, fuck! Oh fuck yeah, James, fuck!” Tibbs exclaimed to James, as James kept pleasuring him.

Tibbs giving into him like that, truly made James feel like he was in control. James would hold onto Tibbs tighter as the sex gradually intensified. This took James back to a period in time when Shepherd and him would sneak around back and forth in their rooms and fuck each other’s brains out. No one on the ship had issues with it, but the thrill of being secretive and trying not to get caught made James hard between his legs.

However, Tibbs was different from Shepherd. VERY different… this was the man he actually wanted to spend the rest of his life with. Everybody on the spaceship KNEW, including Shepherd and he was not jealous. James and Shepherd only had a short fling and Shepherd understood what was truly going on. James had his hooks sinked into Tibbs and he didn’t want to let go.

Once it was all over, Tibbs rolled over in bed and James joined him in the same movement. They held hands and this brought a smile onto both of their faces.

“You know they heard you, right?” James told Tibbs, jokingly.

Tibbs blushed then hid his face in his pillow, “Fuck,”

James laughed at him, Tibbs can be insecure at times about how he sounds during sex or just in general without sex even being involved. James helped him through it though.

“It’s okay, drama queen, you’re not in the military anymore,” James told Tibbs, trying his darned hardest to get Tibbs and his face away from his pillow.

“Shut up,” Tibbs replied to James.

The look on James’ face was priceless, “Oh? Is that right?” He started to play-wrestle with Tibbs and Tibbs laughed in response to that.

“Stop! Stop, I’m all sweaty because of you, stop!” Tibbs exclaimed while he was laughing.

“Hey, the more sweat, the better, baby,” James replied to Tibbs.

“No, no more of that, okay?” Tibbs said to James, just before planting his face into his pillow once again.

“Sure, now get your face out of that pillow, you don’t have to bite it now—I’m not sticking it in again,” James jokingly replied to Tibbs.

“Stop with the sexual jokes man, my god what is wrong with you?” Tibbs said to James.

“Aw, quit it you big baby, come here,” James replied to Tibbs, bringing Tibbs over to his chest to rest on. Tibbs laid comfortably on James’ chest and the both of them fell asleep.

* * *

Tibbs woke up to James not being there, probably went off to cook something or to have a chat with his friend and commander Shepherd Leo. Tibbs just laid there in bed, nude, feeling exposed but covered with a warm blanket. Their ship was cold, VERY cold, but James’ room was the warmest of all the rooms on the ship.

Tibbs started having thoughts about James and would pleasure himself with his left hand stroking up and down his dick. James really brought the horn dog out in Tibbs and that’s what made them perfect for each other. They both LOVED sex, but they saved it for only themselves together. Never brought in a third person into the bedroom because James respects monogamy and so does Tibbs.

Shepherd must have not been chatting with James because Tibbs heard steps around James’ room once he finished himself off. He knocked on the door to check on Tibbs, “Hey Tibbs, buddy, you okay?”

Tibbs laughed nervously, then covered up again, getting on his clothes after wiping the cum off of his dick and crotch, “I’m fine, Leo, I mean commander, just gotta fix myself up,”

“I’ve heard you in there, it’s okay I do that sometimes too haha let me in buddy,” Shepherd Leo said to Tibbs.

“But I’m not ready,” Tibbs whined to Shepherd Leo.

“Come on, I’ve seen James nude before, I’m fine with it,” Shepherd Leo assured to Tibbs.

“Okay…” Tibbs replied to Shepherd Leo.

The blanket fell off of Tibbs once he opened the door for Leo, still a little shy and scared, Tibbs covered up again out of fear.

“Hey hey hey, relax, I’m not gonna do anything,” Leo said to Tibbs, rubbing his shoulders.

“This is weird man, very weird,” Tibbs replied to Leo.

Shepherd Leo chuckled softly and smiled at Tibbs, “Hey I’ve done this around my brother before, it’s okay with me,”

Tibbs relaxed a bit after hearing that, but it didn’t change how weird it felt to him to be around another guy nude who wasn’t sleeping with.

“Go get your clothes, you’re gonna get cold after a while if you stay out here like that too long,” Leo said to Tibbs.

“Yes sir!” Tibbs replied to Shepherd Leo, as he ran away to the bathroom with his clothes held into his arms.

Shepherd Leo chuckled softly to himself, “Cute kid, now I see why James is head over heels about him,”

“Huh?” Tibbs responded to Leo.

“I said nice ass sweet cheeks,” Shepherd Leo told Tibbs.

Tibbs rolled his eyes then laughed, “Fuck off,”

Shepherd Leo laughed harder this time, seeing Tibbs blush as he ran back into the bathroom.

* * *

James came back into his bedroom hours later, the men and women on the ship were having a meeting and James wanted to hear everything. This was Leo’s job to do, but someone else filled in for him while he went to check up on Tibbs.

James came back into his room seeing Leo and Tibbs hanging out together, watching TV while Leo should have been out there working but James had no issue with it. He KNEW Leo wouldn’t hurt Tibbs or inappropriately violate him in any way.

“Hey Commander, aren’t you supposed to be out there working? What are you and my Tibbs doing in here?” James asked Shepherd Leo.

“Just hanging out, Tibbs isn’t as tough as he may seem to people on first appearance, he squealed when he saw a spider crawling around in here and I had to kill it,” Shepherd Leo said to James.

“Fuck you, that was all you, I don’t scream like that,” Tibbs exclaimed to Shepherd Leo.

“Yeah you do, Tibbs, should I tell Commander what we were up to the other night or do you wanna still lie through your teeth there?” James said to Tibbs.

“Don’t you dare, I’ll stop, sorry,” Tibbs replied to James.

James chuckled, “I’m gonna tell Commander anyway, you’re a big boy, you’ll be fine,” he said to Tibbs, as he patted him on the shoulder.

“Why?! I said I’ll stop,” Tibbs replied to James.

“Aww, it’s okay—we’re all good with each other, there’s nothing to be ashamed of, Tibbs,” Shepherd Leo said to Tibbs, placing his hands on Tibbs’ shoulders.

Tibbs shrugged his hands off of his shoulders, a bit butthurt over James’ decision. James saw his reaction, “Hey hey play nice with the Commander, he’s our Boss and our friend, don’t do that again okay?”

Tibbs turnt back to Shepherd Leo and apologized to him, “Sorry, Commander,” then after that putting his head down in shame.

“No no, lift your head back up, you gotta be ready baby, you can be soft with me in the bedroom but not right now—we’re about to go up against the Reapers soon,” James said to Tibbs.

Tibbs listened to James and lifted his head back up, “Okay, let’s get the circus ready then, Commander,”

“Sure, just no more meltdowns like that, okay? You need a cool head for battle, Tibbs, you’re like a cute but intense little ball of lightning but save that for the field, alright?” Shepherd Leo said to Tibbs, placing his hands on Tibbs’ shoulders to comfort him.

Tibbs nodded at Shepherd Leo and all three of them—James included—went back to watching TV again. Comedy shows were a lot different with aliens and other forms of life other than humans. The small amount of half human half cyborgs would show up for Tibbs to relate to them. Tibbs has the strength of over a thousand men since after he was converted over to becoming a human cyborg. He would have the appearance of being human except for his replacement eye which came along with the whole sha-bang and all.

Since after leaving the man behind who betrayed him and let him fall from a skyscraper, Tibbs found a new home with James. Tibbs missed Ray, missed him a lot, he still wonders when Ray will come back for him but he doesn’t know when that will be. All Tibbs knows is the Normandy, James, Shepherd Leo, and all of the other folks he met on the Normandy.

James held Tibbs’ hand as they got closer to each other on the sofa, Shepherd Leo—Commander—watched the two lovers and smiled at them.

“Maybe I should leave you guys alone together?” Shepherd Leo asked James and Tibbs.

“No, you’re good, Tibbs needs both of us strong men to watch over him,” James replied to Leo.

“I can handle things myself, I’m not a baby,” Tibbs replied to James and Leo.

“Sure you can, pup, I better not hear any more squealing this time if you’re bold enough to say that, Tibbs, we’re not gonna be in the bed this time,” James jokingly said to Tibbs.

“Fuck off with that already, James, you’re making me blush again, stop it,” Tibbs replied to James, having a very hard time keeping a serious face.

James loved toying around with Tibbs, Tibbs sometimes would be legitimately mad at James for doing stuff like that. However, other times, Tibbs would be laughing at him and cursing him out at the same time. James brought that fire and that spark out of Tibbs.

“You look cute when you blush, that’s why I like pissing you off—you get that little nervous face and then I have to snap you out of it again, I like that a lot,” James replied to Tibbs.

Tibbs leaned in and sat on James’ lap, his facial expression going from a mixture of annoyance and amusement to at complete ease sitting on James lap on top of him like a small child.

“You boys are too cute, when’s the wedding?” Shepherd Leo said to both James and Tibbs.

“Whoa there, cowboy, James isn’t ready for that yet, are you James?” Tibbs replied to Shepherd Leo, then looking into James’ eyes.

“I mean, uh, if you’re up for it Tibbs, I mean we don’t have to rush, you know?” James replied to Tibbs.

“Give us two more years, Commander, you’ll get front row seats to see it too,” Tibbs said to Shepherd Leo.

“Okay, Tibbs,” Shepherd Leo replied to Tibbs.


	2. Man on a Mission

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> James and Tibbs get in on a little action together before James has to go fight along side his Commander, Shepard Leo.

**Back Down Memory Lane.**

Tibbs truly thought that he had a friend in Dalton, he never thought that the man would let him fall to his death. He pleaded with Dalton to help him so he wouldn’t fall, but the bastard didn’t listen to him. This made Ray even more angry at Dalton, he also didn’t want to go back with them, but Tibbs and Katie were the only two that Ray felt close to. There were many conflicted feelings inside of Ray.

All of Tibbs’ bones were broken and he was long gone on impact. He thought it was all over for him, but a strong Latino man by the name of James Vega came to his rescue and picked him up.

Tibbs woke up, noticing the man holding him like a newborn baby, “Who are you?”

James smiled at him, “James… James Vega,”

“Well thank you, but where are you taking me?” Tibbs asked James.

“You’re all beat up from falling that high, I wanna take care of you papi,” James replied to Tibbs.

Tibbs smiled in response, as he was being carried away, but he fell back to sleep again.

“Hey, hey, don’t leave me yet,” James said to Tibbs, rubbing him up to awake him.

Tibbs opened his eyes, smiled, then went back to sleep again, “Thank you, thank you James,”

James went back to carrying Tibbs around, bringing him onto the Normandy with him and Shepherd Leo. James could tell by his frame that Tibbs could handle himself well in battle, but he chose to not say anything to Tibbs about it at the moment.

“Whoa, who’s this handsome devil here? You cheating on me, James?” Shepherd Leo asked James.

“Hahaha get outta here loco, this is our new buddy, he survived a really bad fall and he’s sleeping it off now,” James replied to Leo.

“Well, let’s get him to the hospital then, shall we?” Leo said to James.

“Copy that, Commander,” James replied to Shepherd Leo, as they took Tibbs to the hospital.

Tibbs rested up while James and Leo were wondering which position Leo was going to give Tibbs. James having a soft spot for Tibbs and not wanting to see all banged up again, he wanted Tibbs to have a desk job but Leo had other plans. Leo saw videos of Tibbs in action in the military and was quite impressed by what he saw.

“James—Tibbs is a big boy, he can take the pressure, he survived that fall didn’t he?” Leo said to James, putting a hand on one of James’ shoulders.

“Yeah, it’s just—look at how peaceful he looked sleeping, I just don’t want… you know? Too much wear and tear on him and his body,” James said about Tibbs to Leo.

James only knew Tibbs so far for a day and he already wanted to protect him, Leo could read James like an open book. James was sweet on Tibbs and had a bit of a crush on him already.

“Slow down a bit, James, you just met this poor guy… I know that look in your eyes all too well,” Shepherd Leo replied to James.

“I know, but well, look at him… how could you not wanna protect him?” James asked Shepherd Leo.

Leo put both of his hands on James’ shoulders, “James, relax your hormones a little, buddy, you’re gonna scare Tibbs away,”

James pouted then looked down in shame, “Maybe I should get a grip on myself, I’m a little, uh, well, you know?”

“Hot in the pants? Fast?” Leo replied to James.

James didn’t like that, but Leo really wanted Tibbs to be part of the team. James and his hormones were gonna have to wait a little while longer to pursue an affair with Tibbs. Leo again comforted James, “Look, I know you like Tibbs a lot, but James you’re gonna have to cool down for now,”

James eventually shook it off and went back to normal… for now. Leo had no idea that it would eat up at James later on… or maybe he did? Either way, James was gonna have to wait it out.

* * *

A week later of Tibbs being on the Normandy with his new friends James and Leo, and James’ anxiousness hasn’t stopped one bit. He WANTED Tibbs, SO BAD, but Leo’s voice would just playback in his head telling him to chill out and take it slow. James had some days when he would cry and Shepherd would be right there to help him through it. James didn’t think that Leo understood exactly what he was going through, Leo remembers how things went between him and James and didn’t want Tibbs to go through that.

However, that STILL didn’t stop James from trying…

On James’ secret visits to Tibbs’ hospital bed, he would give Tibbs roses and even chocolate. Tibbs didn’t quite understand what was going on at first, that is, until the next two weeks after those cute incidents—he planted a kiss on Tibbs’ lips. That was when Tibbs knew EXACTLY what James wanted. James wanted HIM. Tibbs didn’t have any issue with James being forward like that, but it did take Tibbs back to when him and Ray were once having their own thing going on a while ago. Ray would swing between Katie and Tibbs, Katie didn’t know until Ray came back pissed off that Dalton let Tibbs fall to his death. Katie did, though, recall of times when Ray would be a little more sweeter towards Tibbs, grabbing or smacking Tibbs’ ass then winking at him, or just smiling at him. Katie just thought it was one of those cute, sweet, but weird bromances that Ray and Tibbs had, but there was much more to it than just that.

Ray and Tibbs were once lovers, secret lovers. Dalton before he betrayed Tibbs, KNEW of them being together but never said anything. Ray and Tibbs’ affair was similar to James and Tibbs’ affair. They started off all cutesy and lovey dovey, but Ray bouncing back and forth between affairs with Tibbs and Katie wore on Tibbs and Ray. However, Tibbs STILL missed Ray. Even if they couldn’t be in a relationship, their friendship was unbreakable. Tibbs may have cried a few times after knowing Ray was still seeing Katie, but he still wanted Ray around.

Moving on to James seemed to have helped Tibbs a lot, but he wondered how Ray was doing and where he was. It got to the point of James asking Tibbs where to find Ray so the two could reunite, but Tibbs didn’t know. Being with James is enough for Tibbs, but Tibbs still had his wonders.

* * *

**Today Here We Are.**

Tibbs and James slept together in a bunk bed near James’ desk for work, James had a bed at his apartment but the both of them were really in the mood for cuddling. Plus, James liked Tibbs laying on top of his chest while they were sleeping.

Shepard Leo came in to the uber adorable sighting and chuckled with a smile, “Aww, you two,”

James heard Shepard but didn’t move or open his eyes, just made a small and short grunting sound. Tibbs was knocked out too, once he was laying peacefully on top of James, he didn’t want to be disturbed by anyone including Commander Leo.

Steve wanted to be that asshole and got himself a huge bucket of cold water and poured it onto James and Tibbs, “Wakey wakey, lovebirds,”

James jolted out of his bed along with Tibbs, “The fuck was that, Steve?”

“Dude, we were fucking sleeping, you asshole,” Tibbs protested to Steve.

“Don’t care, it’s time to get up and get to work, right Commander?” Steve replied to the guys, looking back towards Shepard.

“Yup, we actually have a lot to do, gents,” Shepard Leo said to all of them.

“But I don’t wanna, I wanna stay in bed with James all day,” Tibbs whined to Shepard Leo.

“No, no, Tibbs—I guess we really should get back to work, we’ll cuddle later okay?” James replied to Tibbs.

Tibbs nodded in response, and Shepard just chuckled softly to himself from how adorable the verbal exchange between Tibbs and James was.

“What are we getting up to today, Shepard?” James asked Shepard Leo.

“Well, I do have errands to do before we get started, but today is the big day… we’re gonna face the reapers but we need to make sure all of our weapons are on point first,” Shepard Leo replied to James, facing each and every last one of them in the room.

Tibbs and James nodded in unison in response to Shepard, little did Shepard Leo know that the two boys would sneak around back into their room and get in some more action in the bed. Tibbs was a little scared of going against Shepard’s commands, but it was James’ idea. James, the both silent and loud troublemaker.

Once Shepard Leo departed from the Normandy take care of his errands first, James and Tibbs went behind his back and went back into their bedroom to play with each other more. James was just hoping that no one on the ship would rat either of them out. Shepard understood that they were a couple, but he also had a rule about canoodling and sexing up before missions.

“Won’t Shepard find out we fucked, James? I’ve never seen him mad before, you know?” Tibbs asked James.

“Aww, don’t worry Tibbs, he won’t—I’ll make sure of that,” James replied to Tibbs, playing around with Tibbs’ cheeks and face.

James chuckled softly and continued to Tibbs, “Just as long as you keep your cute girly moaning down, sunshine,”

Tibbs laughed then shot an mean look at him, “Fuck you, you’re gonna have to not fuck me as hard as you did many times before,”

James’ eyes widened then he flashed a quick smirk at Tibbs, “Oh really? Don’t know if I can control that, pup pup,”

“Better learn how to if you don’t want us to get caught, muscles,” Tibbs replied to James, smacking James on his ass.

The smack on the ass was a sign from Tibbs that he meant business and wanted that D. It also didn’t help that James was looking very delicious in his usual white t-shirt and black leather pants. James forgot to wear a belt today and his butt was sticking out enough for Tibbs and the other crew mates to see. It made it difficult for Tibbs to focus on his work, but he never said anything to James because he was enjoying the view too much.

“Are you sure you wanna be the top this time? I kinda have you beat in size down there, Tibbs,” James said to Tibbs, playfully joking with him.  
“You’re underestimating me a bit too much, James, might have to teach you a lesson for that,” Tibbs replied to James.

“Come on then, papi, let’s see what you got there then,” James said to Tibbs, ready for the challenge.

Tibbs chuckled devilishly, James had no idea what he was in for, but he was going to find out soon enough. The two men made it to their bed and removed all of their clothes, James slightly more eager and anxious to see what Tibbs had in store for him.

“Really? Spongebob boxer briefs, Tibbs? Hahahaha!” James exclaimed to Tibbs, while laughing.

“Yup, what about you with those heart boxers, my man? Or that purple g-string that I like to play with when Commander isn’t looking during the meetings? You can’t talk,” Tibbs bit back at James, in response.

“Better than those bright ass Spongebob boxers, Tibbs, I need to take you to the strip, loco,” James replied to Tibbs, still having a good chuckle in between a few words.

“That’s it, James,” Tibbs said to James, as he tried his very best to tackle James but failed because of James’ size and strength compared to his.

James laughed and went to pet Tibbs on the head like a small dog, “Very cute, Tibbs, but you’re just a little pup, you can’t tackle me papi,”

“But my strength, how?” Tibbs asked James.

“You see my muscles baby, I’m too solid for you sunshine, let it go before you hurt yourself,” James replied to Tibbs.

“I’ll get you someday, James,” Tibbs said to James, playfully rubbing his shoulders in response to his remarks.

Once the cute exchange ended, the two were ALL OVER each other. Tibbs went to town on James’ ass and put his face in between his cheeks. Tibbs’ tongue went in and out to make it easier for him to slide in and out of James’ ass.

* * *

Two hours later and both Tibbs and James were spent. They really wanted to keep a low profile, but once they get into it with each other and have sex, out goes their lights for a while. If Shepard came waltzing on through the door right this moment… Ooh there WOULD be trouble.

Tibbs was the first to wake up while James was still sleeping, “Oh fuck, oh fuck, dude we slept, get up!”

James wouldn’t move, all he did was make an annoyed, groaning sound at Tibbs protesting at him. James didn’t want to be moved or disturbed, so Tibbs ran some cold water into a big bucket at the sink then he poured it over James to wake him up.

“Ahhh! God damn it, what the fuck?!” James exclaimed to Tibbs.

“Papi, Commander Leo’s about to come back soon, he’s gonna freak out if he catches us sleeping on the job,” Tibbs said to James, tugging him on his shirt.

“Nuh, he can wait, I’m not moving—get back in the bed, pup,” James replied to Tibbs, tugging Tibbs back into the bed with him.

“Noooo, Leo’s gonna yell at us, come oooon!” Tibbs exclaimed to James, pulling him by his arm this time. Poor Tibbs couldn’t move James from the bed. James is still too solid for him to lift.

“Papi… come ‘mere, I’ve got your back, Commander Leo can yell at us all he wants,” James reassured Tibbs, to get him to stop tugging him around.

“But James,” Tibbs whined at James.

“Tibbs, we’re gonna be fine pup, quit that whining and lay here with me,” James replied to Tibbs, pulling Tibbs close to him and giving him a kiss on his cheek.

Tibbs eventually gave into James’ commands. After Ray, James is the only man who makes Tibbs submit like an obedient son to his strict father, but as lovers and not as relatives. Tibbs was still a little worried about Shepard coming in and yelling at him and James, seeing them both sleep on the job. James found a way to get Tibbs’ to settle down and close his eyes again.

“Commander is gonna drill us for slacking man,” Tibbs whined again at James.

James held Tibbs and played with his hair and his face, “Shhh, you’re still tired, I can see it in your eyes,”

Tibbs relaxed and listened to James, James truly knew how to get to him, his eyes closed with James holding him.

“Good boy, love you Tibbs,” James said softly into Tibbs’ ears.

“Love you too, James,” Tibbs replied to James while his eyes were closed.

It no longer mattered if Shepard Leo was about to come back anymore, they had each other so even if James were let go or anything—Tibbs will go with him. Shepard Leo wasn’t going to let James go that easy, but he would still make sure to it to punish him and Tibbs if they were caught slacking.

* * *

Shepard Leo finally came back to the Normandy after running all of his errands, a tad bit tired but had coffee waiting for him back at the Normandy. Liara made plenty for the whole crew, her energy level was always four times the amount of a human’s energy. Liara’s composure made it hard to notice though.

EDI took Joker’s place in piloting while he had to go to the bathroom and on his way back, he ran into Shepard, “Hey Commander, you might wanna see something before you get coffee,”  
Shepard Leo raised an eyebrow at Joker, with a puzzled face, “It’ll have to wait, Joker, I need my coffee before I see anything that will drive me crazy like that other thing you’ve shown me last time,”

Shepard grabbed his cup, poured black coffee in with some caramel creamer, and mixed it all up together.

“You really love that stuff, don’t you?” Joker said to Shepard, playfully.

“Keeps me sane, Joker, this is a tough job, keeping everything together and all,” Shepard Leo told Joker.

“I know, Commander, I knock back a beer every night,” Joker said to Shepard Leo, jokingly.

“Joker! You don’t drink, what are you talking about?” Shepard Leo replied to Joker, with a puzzled and amused look on his face.

“I know, I’m just messing around with you,” Joker said to Shepard Leo.

“Okay then you little clown, let’s get back to work,” Shepard Leo replied to Joker, playfully.

Joker nodded and went back to his space on the Normandy next to EDI. Joker also forgot to wear a belt and his pants were falling a little, “Hey Joker, I see some crack, put that back,”

“You like it? I did that on purpose,” Joker told Shepard Leo.

“I mean it’s cute and a little hairy, but I have Steve, slow your roll there and get on back to EDI, cowboy,” Shepard Leo replied to Joker.

“It was worth a try, Shepard, you might come around with a few drinks in you,” Joker said to Shepard Leo, throwing him a wink as he walked away.

Shepard Leo chuckled then rolled his eyes at Joker, “Get outta here, silly,”

Though Joker was dating EDI, he still liked to make passes at Shepard. Joker was a little shy boy, so he would never actually go that far with Shepard. Joker just really enjoyed teasing his Commander Leo.

Shepard Leo never found out what Joker wanted besides, in a way, Shepard—but that didn’t matter at the moment. Shepard Leo decided to go check on James and Tibbs to see what they’re up to or if they’re out and ready to get to work.

Leo finally found his crew mates and friends’ room, the door was unlocked, and he heard LOUD snores coming from James. Tibbs, on the other hand, was a quiet sleeper. The two men held each other as they were sleeping, in complete peace and harmony, but Shepard wanted to get things up and rolling. Shepard left the room and found a bucket of cold water to pour the two men.

“Ahhh! Shepard, Jesus that’s fucking cold,” Tibbs exclaimed, in response to the ice cold water being poured over his body.

“Fuck, Commander, at least give out a warning before you do that, goddamn,” James exclaimed to Shepard Leo.

“No sleeping or cuddling on the job, let’s get to work boys,” Shepard Leo said to both Tibbs and James.

Tibbs defied Shepard and climbed back into the bed, “Pick me up and make me,”

“Come on now Tibbs, it’s not a time to play games right now,” Shepard Leo said to Tibbs, pulling him out of the bed.

“Tibbs, what did I say to you about doing stuff like that to Commander? Behave,” James said to Tibbs, scolding him like a small child.

“Sorry,” Tibbs said to Shepard Leo, in a low tone.

“Sorry what?” James asked Tibbs.

“Sorry, Commander,” Tibbs said to Shepard Leo, in a louder tone.

Shepard put one of his hands on Tibbs’ shoulder, “We have work to do, Tibbs, you can’t be goofing off like this at a time like this, alright?”

“Yes sir,” Tibbs replied to Shepard Leo.

“Good boy, now you and James need to get to work, no more games,” Shepard Leo said to Tibbs.

Tibbs and James prepared themselves mentally and emotionally for the work day. Shepard still wanted to go after the Reapers and it was James’ turn to go with Shepard Leo this time. That meant Tibbs had to stay with Joker, Steve, and the other crew members who don’t usually go to fight or others who didn’t get picked to fight side by side with Shepard. Shepard Leo took James and Liara with him to took out Reapers who invaded one of the Asari’s bases.

James looked back at Tibbs, as he looked to James with a sad puppy dog look, “I’ll be back, pup, I promise—you stay here and talk with Steve and Joker,”

“Be careful out there, James,” Tibbs replied to James, as the both of them hugged each other.

Shepard Leo was a bit worried about Tibbs, as Tibbs does become more emotional when he knows that James will be going out to fight without him there. Shepard decided to just let it be and wait until he returns with James to console Tibbs.

* * *

Steve and Joker saw a sulking Tibbs walk into the room with them, “Aww, it’s gonna be okay—James is a big man, he’ll survive,” Steve said to Tibbs, consoling him.

Steve understood that pain in Tibbs’ face, he lost his husband to the battle and to see Tibbs have that same exact fear made him feel bad for Tibbs. Joker, on the other hand, would make all of these funny and crazy faces to make Tibbs laugh but it didn’t work.

“Oh, I get it, it’s that L word again, the thing that comes with marriage… I mean the M word,” Joker said to Steve.

“He’s not a baby, Joker, Tibbs is just scared, that’s all,” Steve replied to Joker.

“Let me talk with Tibbs,” Joker said to Steve.

“Be careful with him, Joker, this is a touchy time right now for Tibbs,” Steve replied to Joker.

“He’s in good hands, quit worrying,” Joker told Steve, as they walked off alone together.

Tibbs now had a puzzled look on his face, “Where are we going, man?”

“War happens, my friend, now I’m not saying that James will die but don’t hurt yourself too much worrying about it so much—James will be back,” Joker told Tibbs.

Tibbs relaxed after Joker done talking, it feel pretty damn good to have someone to look after him while James is in the fight along side Shepard Leo against the Reapers.

“Come on buddy, let’s go back to Steve, we have plenty of stuff we could do together on the Normandy,” Joker continued to Tibbs, holding his hand and leading him back to Steve.

Steve saw a more calm Tibbs come back in the room with Joker, Tibbs hugging Joker as a way of saying thanks, “Ok, Tibbs—careful there, Joker has fragile bones,”

“Okay,” Tibbs replied to Steve.

Steve decided to bring Tibbs and Joker with him to look after the ship, Tibbs still missed James but Steve and Joker really made sure that he didn’t feel too lonely on the ship. Tibbs noticed a few spare parts laying around on the Normandy, but they were no good to Steve and Joker. The two of them found other spare parts that Liara had in her office and decided to get those out of their locker.

Steve was truly amazed by how strong Tibbs was, Steve would ask Tibbs if he needed any help and he never said so. Both Steve and Joker made sure that Tibbs wouldn’t go too crazy while James was out on his mission with Shepard.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> SPOILER ALERT!!! It REALLY pissed me off that Dalton let poor Tibbs fall to his death in Bloodshot. So, Tibbs has a new home with James and Leo. Ray will be coming back for Tibbs, that’s all I’ll reveal for now.


	3. Ray then James, part 1

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tibbs still has dreams of when he was dating Ray, but he still loves James. Conflicting emotions are never easy, but Tibbs will find a way as usual.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I really wanted to go back memory lane to the events of the 2020 Bloodshot movie then transition back into Tibbs' new home on the Normandy with his lover James' and their friend/Commander Shepard Leo. It wasn't very hard to me at all because I love both Bloodshot and Mass Effect 3 for their stories. Still not too sure if I wanna bring back Dalton or not... it's... well, possible.

**when love held us near**. **dream**.

Both men being former military, what Tibbs and Ray had was instant love. They both would stay up all night and talk about their time as soldiers in the military then some way somehow, their clothes would disappear and they would just melt into each other’s hands. There would even be an angry, complaining Dalton downstairs hitting the ceiling with a spare broom he found in the bathroom.

Tibbs loved being touched by Ray and the same went for Ray the other way around. Ray and James were very much alike, tough men but still had a nice, kind, and sweet side to them.

Ray started to feel up Tibbs as Tibbs was seated comfortably on Ray’s lap, they would do this all the time whenever they become intimate with each other. Tibbs moaned as Ray started to get a good grip on his ass and nibbled on his neck, leaving a hickey, “Fuck, don’t stop,”

Ray listened and kept going, making Tibbs warm between his legs, “You like that?” Ray asked Tibbs, as he paused briefly to get those few words out to Tibbs.

“Fuck yeah,” Tibbs exclaimed to Ray.

Ray moaned in response to Tibbs, then the two of them chuckled as a reaction to how good it all felt to both of them.

Dalton noticed the door was unlocked and peeked in, “Peek-a-boo! Whooooa!” he exclaimed to Tibbs and Ray.

“Fuck off, Dalton, what do you want?!” Tibbs exclaimed to Dalton, annoyed at him interrupting his time with Ray.

“Calm down there, little pup, you know what the boss says about canoodling, right? You two can’t be playing around like that,” Dalton replied to Tibbs.

“Leave us alone, asshole,” Ray exclaimed to Dalton.

“Only if Tibbs lets me use his Xbox One sometime,” Dalton said to Ray, before looking back at Tibbs.

“This again Dalton? Really? Alright, just don’t break it, you’re way too rough with shit sometimes man, I swear,” Tibbs replied to Dalton.

“Thanks, sweet cheeks,” Dalton said to Tibbs, as he winked at Tibbs, leaving them in peace.

“If you break it again, I’ll kick your ass like I did last time,” Tibbs shouted at Dalton.

“Fuck off Tibbs, you cried like a little baby when I was done with you in that fight, Ray really softened you up,” Dalton shouted back at Tibbs.

“You damn near broke my arm that time, how was I not gonna cry motherfucker?” Tibbs replied to Dalton.

“Hey, hey, hey! Dalton, Tibbs! It’s midnight, stop all of that yelling! That’s an order!” Their boss, Dr. Emil Harting, exclaimed to both of them over the intercom.

“But, Doc, Tibbs won’t share with me again,” Dalton whined to Dr. Emil, as if he were five years old again.

“Dalton, stop with that voice, you’re a grown man—act like it,” Dr. Emil said to Dalton, annoyed.

Tibbs got a big kick out of hearing Dalton being scolded as if he were a misbehaving child, he couldn’t help but laugh at it all.

“Shut up, Tibbs!” Dalton whined to Tibbs.

“Do I need to come in there, Tibbs? I really don’t want to, I’m tired, but keep that up and I will,” Dr. Emil exclaimed to Tibbs.

“Don’t come in then,” Tibbs said under his breathe. Ray chuckled soft enough that Dr. Emil couldn’t hear him in response.

“Ooh, Tibbs, what was that? Doc, Tibbs said—“ Dalton said to Dr. Emil, before being interrupted by Tibbs hitting him with one of his pillows. “Ow! Tibbs, chill out,”

“You gentlemen better get to bed before I come up there,” Dr. Emil said to both Tibbs and Dalton.

“Sorry, Boss,” Tibbs and Dalton said in unison to Dr. Emil Harting.

Ray was still laughing at the whole situation, kept it at a lower tone while the conversation was taking place then got louder once Dr. Emil turnt off the intercom for the night.

“He just talks to you guys like little boys,” Ray said to both Tibbs and Dalton, shaking his head.

“Yeah? Well fuck him, he’s not my dad, I run him,” Dalton said to Ray.

“I heard that, Dalton,” Dr. Emil said unexpectedly to Dalton. Dalton whined, out of shock and frustration, not knowing that there’s microphones in random parts of the facility.

Dalton eventually left Tibbs and Ray alone and went back to his room, and then Ray and Tibbs slept in bed together—finishing on what they’ve started earlier.

* * *

**back to life, back to reality**. **real time**.

Tibbs suddenly woke up, the dream made him wake up once memories of him and Ray began to turn into Dalton standing there and letting him fall to his death. It turnt into a nightmare once Dalton came about into his mind. James held Tibbs, helping him through those rough moments.

“What’s wrong, pup?” James asked Tibbs, as he held and kissed Tibbs to calm him down.

“Bad dream, it started off good, but then it turnt bad, Dalton fucked it all up,” Tibbs told James.

“Who’s Dalton?” James asked Tibbs.

“An asshole who let me fall to my death, that is—until you shown up and rescued me, James,” Tibbs replied to James.

“You need me to do something to him?” James asked Tibbs.

“No, he’s dead now, Ray took care of him I’ve heard,” Tibbs replied to James.

“I wanna meet this Ray sometime, you bring him up in your sleep a lot,” James said to Tibbs.

“He’s an old friend and we used to… uh, well,” Tibbs replied to James, nervously.

“Used to what?” James asked Tibbs.

“We were intimate before, but he also was dating a girl named Katie and we had to stop because of that,” Tibbs replied to James.

“That’s pretty fucked up, so you were just his piece of ass while he had a girl, Tibbs?” James asked Tibbs.

“Nah, James, it wasn’t like that papi, he said he wanted to marry me and all but I guess maybe it was like that… I still don’t get it, but I still miss him as a friend,” Tibbs replied to James.

“Nothing wrong with that, just as long as he doesn’t try anything with you—he’s alright with me,” James said to Tibbs, putting a hand on Tibbs’ shoulder.

“I won’t let that happen, James, I promise,” Tibbs replied to James.

James felt concerned at times hearing Tibbs cry out Ray’s name in bed sometimes. Tibbs is a pretty loyal man, though he did struggle with moving on completely, he knew that James was his new lover. James was the man who actually planned to be in his life much longer than Ray planned to.

James had to help Tibbs through these conflicted kind of emotions, he didn’t want to lose Tibbs or see him get played like that again.

* * *

**baby come to me**.

Once Shepard Leo finished up his work for the day, he went back to his apartment outside of the Normandy. He wanted some time to clear his head from all that went on at his job as the Commander. Leo was pleasantly surprised to hear a knock at the door and see Steve’s charming face greeting him.

“My, my, Shepard—you look amazing with your shirt off, and with it on too,” Steve said to Shepard Leo.

“Well, thank you, what’s going on, Steve? Wanna come in?” Shepard Leo asked Steve.

“Sure, been wanting to spend some time with you alone for a while,” Steve replied to Shepard Leo.

“Well, now you can, sweets,” Shepard Leo said to Steve, flashing a quick wink to him.

Steve and Shepard Leo sat on the sofa near the fireplace, neither of them were cold, but the overall scenery just really set the tone just right for them.

“I know it’s just us, but I’m still a little worried about James and Tibbs,” Steve told Shepard Leo.

Shepard Leo leaned in and put his hand on Steve’s shoulder, “They seem fine, sweets,”

“Tibbs was so upset when James had to go on the mission with you, it was like a baby son being away from his dad for a long time—it was so cute but sad because it took me back to me losing my ex,” Steve replied to Shepard Leo.

“Look, Steve—don’t hurt yourself too much, I completely understand your pain but this is what happens in war. Some of us die and some of us live, I just don’t want you to stress yourself out too much,” Shepard Leo said to Steve.

Steve looked down and pouted, not in response to Leo’s comments but just from the weight of it all, “Look, I don’t mean to come off cold, but I just want you to have a cool head for battle, if you need to cry it all out right now then you’re more than welcome to, I won’t judge,” Shepard Leo continued to Steve.

Steve looked back up into Shepard’s eyes and started to do exactly that, cry it all out. Shepard held Steve tight and made sure that he felt safe with him. The tears were a product of Steve working very hard on the ship, the times that Steve and Shepard didn’t get a chance to spend together, and his overall concern for both Tibbs and James. Shepard could see how big of a heart that Steve had, always there for everyone he loves, including him.

Steve finally had his cry, all released and mostly out of his system, it would still come back whenever the right situation came into his life again. He’s still human.

Once the crying ceased, Steve and Shepard decided to talk about other things. More lighthearted stuff. Like Joker and EDI becoming a thing, an actual relationship.

“So how’s a human like Joker gonna make love to EDI, a robot? I would love to see that take place… actually, nah I wouldn’t, I’ve seen Joker downstairs before,” Steve told Shepard Leo.

Shepard laughed wholeheartedly, Steve’s awkward reaction to Joker and EDI’s relationship was quite a laugh to him. Steve joined him in laughter, realizing how ridiculous his reaction was and felt foolish afterwards.

“Well, Tibbs is like half robot and half human, him and James always find a way to get it on, I’m sure that Joker and EDI will too,” Shepard Leo said to Steve, playfully.

“Yeah, I don’t wanna even think about James being naked, that’s all Tibbs,” Steve replied to Shepard Leo.

“Stop lying, Estaban, you know you like the view,” James blurted out to Steve, shaking his head and chuckling at him.

“Sure, big boy, you keep thinking that, alright?” Steve replied to James, playfully.

“James? How’d you get here? Where’s Tibbs?” Shepard Leo asked James.

“Through our transit, loco, and Tibbs is still on the Normandy, he’s hanging out with Liara and Joker. Joker wanted to see Tibbs about something and Liara just happened to be there too,” James replied to Shepard Leo, before placing his hands over Shepard’s shoulders.

“You alright, Estaban? Your eyes look a little red,” James asked Steve.

“Tibbs was worried about you earlier, it made me think of my ex-husband before he died, just seeing him worry about you that much,” Steve confessed to James.

“Aww, I’m not going anywhere yet, Estaban—The Reapers can’t stop these guns. Tibbs is alright now,” James replied to Steve.

“I sure hope not, James,” Steve said to James.

“Look, Estaban, don’t worry, this big boy is gonna be just fine. Don’t let your own memories of your husband do this to you, it’s okay to feel that way but it’s not healthy, we’re gonna get through this alright?” James replied to Steve.

“Okay, I’m sorry, I just worry sometimes you know,” Steve said to James.

James put a hand on Steve’s shoulder to comfort him, “I know, but don’t worry too much—it’s not good for you, mi hermano,”

Steve nodded in response and James hugged him, “Thank you for being a great guy to us, Estaban, a guy with a big heart like you is always needed in this world,”

“Awwww! I didn’t know you could be a big old cute softy, James. I like this side of you,” Shepard Leo said to James, jokingly to lighten up the mood.

Steve chuckled at Shepard and James just looked back at Shepard and rolled his eyes, “Don’t get too used to it, Shepard, you still owe me a boxing match—you beat me last time,”

Shepard let out a short chuckle, “You sure you’re game for that, James? You’re not scared to lose again, amigo?”

“Nah, I can take you this time, loco, I’m gonna come ready this time,” James replied to Shepard Leo.

Shepard let out a smirk and shook James’ hand in agreement, “We’ll see about that, buddy, no crying to Tibbs when you lose though,”

* * *

**friendship never ends**.

While James was off spending time with Shepard and Steve, Tibbs stayed behind with Liara and Joker to go over many things. Some of those things were just to hang out and some involved going over what to do with the ship. Joker decided to press Tibbs about James the whole time while Liara was going over the specs of the Normandy to see if they still stood enough of a chance up against the reapers in the long term.

Joker smiled at Tibbs, playfully grabbing his arm, “So, Tibbs?”

“…Yeah?” Tibbs hesitatingly blurted out to Joker.

“How’s it dating a big strong guy like James? I know you guys both struggle with wanting to be in charge and all,” Joker asked Tibbs.

“James is fine, we fight sometimes but we still love each other, why? What’s up Joker?” Tibbs replied to Joker.

“I remember seeing you with a bruise on your neck—oh wait, that was a hickey? Oh, never mind,” Joker said to Tibbs.

“What else would it be, silly? I’m not gonna just let James hit me, you know? I can take him,” Tibbs replied to Joker.

“That’s not what Dr. Chakwas told me, I still remember the last time you tried to take down James, you were crying like a newborn baby,” Joker said to Tibbs.

“Oh, fuck off man, Doc don’t know what she’s talking about, I kicked James’ ass that day,” Tibbs replied to Joker.

“No… No, you didn’t, Tibbs, James literally had to carry you to Dr. Chakwas while you were crying,” Liara responded to Tibbs.

“And James was like ‘oh quit it, you big baby,” the whole time, stop lying Tibbs, it’s not good for you boo-bear,” Joker said to Tibbs, playfully smacking Tibbs’ cheeks.

Tibbs just laughed it off, still not wanting to let the lie go out of both pride and shame. He didn’t want to admit to Joker and Liara that James gave him a run for his money and put him in his place. Tibbs really liked to portray himself as this big tough guy to appeal to James, but even James wasn’t fooled, he saw how soft Tibbs can be once he lets his defenses down with him. James unwrapped Tibbs and weakened him so much that the tough guy mask kinda faded away. The other crew mates and members of the Normandy could see it, Tibbs was under James’ spell and command.

“I miss James, when’s he coming back?” Tibbs asked both Joker and Liara.

“We don’t know, don’t know why you’re asking us,” Joker replied to Tibbs.

“Ugh! Whatever Joker,” Tibbs said to Joker, as he walked away from them.

“Hey, get back here, where are you going?!” Joker exclaimed to Tibbs.

“To find James, I want him back here,” Tibbs replied to Joker.

“Do you even know where he went off to?” Liara asked Tibbs.

“No, but—,” Tibbs replied to Liara, before being interrupted.

Joker grabbed Tibbs’ hand and brought him back inside, “We don’t wanna lose you, Tibbs, James will come back—just be patient,”

Tibbs eventually submitted to their commands and went back inside with them. Liara was running some tests on spare parts that Shepard picked up on other planets he restored to their original leaders from the conquered Reapers that took charge of them previously. Tibbs gradually became bored and started to go to Joker who was talking with EDI.

“Joker, I need things to do, come on,” Tibbs said to Joker, tugging him by his hand.

“Hey, hey, watch the hand there, I’m fragile,” Joker exclaimed to Tibbs.

“Can we be of any assistance, Tibbs?” EDI asked Tibbs.

“I’m fucking bored, where’s James and Shepard?” Tibbs complained to them, in a whiny tone.

“They’re hanging out with each other right now with Steve, come ‘mere, you might wanna check out these specs with us,” Joker replied to Tibbs.

“But I don’t know how these work, what are those?” Tibbs whined to Joker.

“Spare engine parts for the Normandy, we don’t really need them right now, but they’re here just in case we actually need them,” Joker replied to Tibbs, being very patient with Tibbs’ whining.

“I’m getting a signal from the Citadel—it appears that James, Shepard, and Steve are on their way back. They’re consuming a lot of alcohol, however.” EDI said to both Tibbs and Joker.

“No! James is gonna be all sleepy when he gets back,” Tibbs complained.

“Tibbs, James is a beast, he could drink vodka and not feel a thing, stop the whining buttercup,” Joker said to Tibbs.

“I wanna see James!” Tibbs exclaimed, as he bolted to the door.

Joker came running after Tibbs, “Hey, get back here! Tibbs!”

“No!” Tibbs exclaimed to Joker, as he kept running away.

It didn’t take very long for Tibbs to get into an accident and run into the door, “Ahhh! I didn’t see the door, what the hell man!”

Joker laughed at Tibbs and shook his head at him, out of pity, “That’s why you need to be a good boy and stick with us, Tibbs, that wouldn’t had happened if you stayed here. I’m telling James and Shepard when they come back,”

“No, don’t say anything, I’m going back in, dude—no!” Tibbs pleaded with Joker.

“Too late now, Tibbs,” Joker replied to Tibbs, shaking his head again.

It wasn’t very long until James and Shepard came back from the apartment with Steve driving them back to the Normandy. Steve smiled at Shepard, yucking it up over how much of a lightweight he is with his drinks at times, “Come on Commander, you’ve got a ship to run,”

James slurred out, “Hey, what did you do with your skin, Estaban? It’s looking shinier and shinier and those eyes,”

Steve laughed in response to James, “Don’t make Tibbs jealous now, James, go sober up big boy,” patting on his back as he dropped them both off where all of the other ship members were.

James blurted again to Steve, “Come on, Estaban, let’s do the touching game again like we did back then,” his words an almost slurred hot mess.

“James! You’re drunk, I don’t know what you’re talking about, what touching game?” Steve replied to James, returning to him to respond.

“You touched my dick a few times and you, you, you liked it, remember chica?” James continued to Steve, touching his face and slurring his words still. He stopped attempting to hold a conversation once he fell over in complete drunkard galore.

“James, you’re drunk, don’t believe this guy, Shepard,” Steve said to Shepard Leo while looking at James struggle to stay awake.

Shepard walked over to James, patting his face to wake him up again, “Come on, come on, muscles, you’ve got a boyfriend to cuddle waiting on you,”

James opened his eyes very quick as soon as he heard the word boyfriend, “Didn’t know you had the hots for me, Commander, were you hard when we fought that time loco?”

“Stop it, you wish, I’m talking about Tibbs, your pup?” Shepard Leo replied to James, refreshing his memory.

“Oh yeah, Tibbs, let’s go check on my pup pup,” James said to Shepard Leo, trying to get back up again and falling back down.

“Want me to carry you there to him, James?” Shepard Leo asked James.

“Nah, I’ve got this Commander, I’ve got it, whoooa fuck!” James replied to Shepard Leo, still struggling to move without falling back down.

Shepard Leo grabbed a wheelchair for James, James couldn’t get up and move properly after he consumed so much booze, “Aww Loco, you shouldn’t have,” James told Shepard Leo, before hiccuping.

“Come on, let’s go check on Tibbs,” Shepard replied to James, pushing the wheelchair.

* * *

**anything for my man**.

The ship members at Normandy had quite the laugh watching Shepard try to wheel James back on into the Normandy. Shepard also could barely hold his balance, Liara had to come by and help him with James while Joker held his hand to keep him from falling. Tibbs just stood there, looking and laughing, but then worried once he saw James in the wheelchair.

“James, papi, what did those reapers do to you?” Tibbs asked James.

“Reapers? Tibbs, I got drunk baby, who’s Reapers?” James replied to Tibbs, still slurring.

“Oh, well, thank goodness, I thought we were gonna lose our special time,” Tibbs said to James, sighing in relief.

“No, time for bed, time for bed,” James replied to Tibbs, struggling to move without nearly falling or tripping while under the influence.

Shepard, while he was halfway no better, looked at James in shame towards him, “Sleep it off, James, you don’t wanna hurt Tibbs now,”

Tibbs was disappointed, but knew that James was in no position or shape to make love with him tonight. That hangover that James was going to feel in the morning would be BRUTAL in all caps.

“Tibbs? Is that you? Where did you come from, my pup?” James asked Tibbs, still slurring his words once again.

“Come on, big boy, let’s get some rest, okay?” Tibbs replied to James.

“Rest? I’m wide awake, Tibbs, what are you talking about?” James said to Tibbs, as they both walked away from the crew back into their bedroom.

Steve took Shepard to his cabin to sleep off the drinks, he really wanted to stay with him in bed but the shuttle was calling on him to keep it in tip top shape. EDI and Joker regrouped with Liara, who was still running test on the spare parts, they felt bad for Liara because it seemed like hours that she was working on those.

Tibbs sat on the bed, right next to James who was truly struggling to get over the high of the alcohol he drank a while ago. Gently rubbing James’ head as he laid there helplessly.

“Party Vega, party Vega!” James blurted out, getting sleepier and sleepier as Tibbs laid him down in their bed.

“I’ll be back later, James, you get some rest okay?” Tibbs replied to James, still rubbing him gently, helping James relax.

“No, I’m ready Commander, I’m not drunk,” James blurted out to Tibbs, delirious and struggling to stay awake.

“James, I’m not Shepard, I’m Tibbs, your pup—get some rest big boy,” Tibbs replied to James.

James couldn’t fight it anymore, he closed his eyes and let himself go completely. Tibbs actually wanted James to stay awake so they could have some time in between the sheets together, but he knew James was in no shape for that at the moment.

Steve called Tibbs on his earpiece, “Did big boy Vega finally close his eyes, Tibbs?”

“Yeah, he’s the helpless pup now, not me,” Tibbs said to Steve, jokingly.

“You’re always gonna be the little pup, Tibbs,” Steve replied to Tibbs, playfully.

Tibbs rolled his eyes and chuckled under his breathe, “Can I be your lapdog while James is sleeping then?”

Steve chuckled softly, “Sure, I’ll even let you work on the shuttle too,”

Tibbs smiled and continued, “Okay, see you downstairs, Steve,”


	4. Ray then James, part 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tibbs gets a letter from Ray back on Earth while James is sleeping off his hangover, Steve at first advises him not to look at it, but Tibbs felt that he needed closure and an apology.

Tibbs and James shared a laptop together in their room, Tibbs was a little scared to check his emails in the room ( _knowing that Ray still has feelings for him, but Tibbs wanted to move on…_ ). Tibbs was amazed at how much faster the internet was in outer space on the Normandy and how it no longer needed wires or anything to restrict it from being used in bad weather.

(( _Should I check my emails? What if he sends me a nude while James is sleeping? Fuck. Don’t do that to me, Ray, please_ …)) Poor Tibbs wanted to move on, but what he and Ray had was something that _deserved_ an apology and explanation for Ray’s infidelity.

James still groaned from his hangover, tossing and turning a bit in bed—Tibbs would go back to James and gently rubbing him to comfort him, “What’s going on?”

“You’re drunk, James, you need me to get you a ginger ale or something? Water?” Tibbs asked James, speaking softly in a calming tone.

“Nope, I’m just gonna lay here, pup, you gonna come lay here with me?” James replied to Tibbs, in a bit of a whiny tone.

“I’ll be there soon, I’ve gotta check on something real quick, you rest up and when you feel my hand—that means I’m back, okay?” Tibbs told James.

“ _Okay_ …” James whined to Tibbs, he didn’t put up much of a fight, he just wanted to sleep off the hangover.

Tibbs walked back over to the laptop on their table, in nothing but his Joe Boxer underwear, only because he felt more comfortable that way—not only because James likes seeing Tibbs in his underwear or completely nude.

(( _Alright, Ray, what ‘chu got for me, bub?_ ))

Tibbs had so many unread emails since leaving Earth with James and Commander Leo Shepard that he couldn’t even be bothered to keep count. Ray’s email to Tibbs was the hundredth email in the bunch, Tibbs’ eyes widened at how many emails he had been left.

(( _There you are, Ray…_ ))

X X X X

**_Tibbs,_ **

**_I know you’re still out there, someone told me (don’t remember who it was) but here I am… sending you this. We’ve got a lot to talk about once we meet up again, Earth has been fucked with by these weird alien robot hybrid looking creatures… the Reapers I think they call themselves. Anyways, I’m coming to see you soon. Wait up for me, I should be at the hospital tomorrow afternoon. I miss you, pup, take care…_ **

**_Love,_ **

**_Ray_ **

X X X X

(( _Well, at least Ray kept it classy, but fuck… that was a really cute message, control it Tibbs, control it… you have James now…_ ))

Tibbs decided to reply back to Ray right that moment, fighting (with all of his might) the urge to send him a seductive picture of what Ray is missing out on.

X X X X

**_Ray,_ **

**_Yup, I’m still out here in space with a group of really nice people and other friendly creatures that are not human but also awesome in their own way and stuff. I’ve really gotta talk to you as well, some things have changed since we’ve been together back on Earth. Gonna tell you all about it whenever we see each other again. I miss you too, papito, stay safe while you’re coming out here, the Reapers ain’t no joke from stories I’ve heard about them._ **

**_Love,_ **

**_Tibbs_ **

X X X X

Tibbs sighed once he sent that email out to Ray, genuinely hoping that Ray wouldn’t take that message as an invitation to seduce him while he’s with James. Tibbs personally thought that Ray was still gonna make an attempt, but Tibbs wanted that explanation so that’ll just be the risk that he’ll have to take.

Tibbs finally came back to bed with James who seemed to have finally settled down and found a position in bed that was most comfortable for him. Tibbs put his arms around James and kissed him on his cheek which caused him to make a sound of contentment.

“I’m right here, James, your pup is here to stay now,” Tibbs told James, softly speaking into his ear.

****

Friday afternoon finally came, Ray found a spare room in the hospital while the guards weren’t looking—Tibbs followed Ray into the empty room. _Fuck_.

“You’re not gonna try anything on me, are you now?” Tibbs asked Ray.

“Nope, I just wanna talk,” Ray replied to Tibbs.

“Well—“ Tibbs said to Ray, before being interrupted by Ray.

Ray held both of Tibbs’ hand, rubbing them gently, while looking him in the eye, “Look, I know I’ve fucked up with you, I kinda bounced back and forth between you and KT back on Earth, but me and her fell out now—she found another man,”

Tibbs rolled his eyes at Ray, “And _now_ you want me back?”

“Well… uh, yeah… if nothing has changed too much,” Ray replied to Tibbs.

Tibbs chuckled softly, “Well, Ray, papito, I’ve got some bad news for you—I’ve met someone new since you’ve been gone,”

Ray’s eyes widened, a bit heartbroken, “Who? Who is he?”

To both Tibbs and Ray’s surprise, James walked into the room having overheard them, “James… James Vega,” James told Ray.

“Oh, me and Tibbs didn’t do anything if you were wondering,”

“Well, that’s cool, but it’s a little weird to bring him into this room all alone if you two weren’t gonna do anything,”

Ray began to blush, “Well, uh, I’m not really good with crowds and a lot of people, I didn’t, uh—I’m not… mmmm, sorry,”

“It’s alright, James, he didn’t touch me,” Tibbs told James, as he gently patted him on the shoulder.

James sized Ray up a bit, checking him out a certain way to make sure Tibbs was fine, then stopped once he realized that Ray wasn’t going to touch Tibbs, “Okay, I’ll let you both talk, I’m going back to the Normandy, pup,” he said to Tibbs, before kissing him.

“See you there later, papito,” Tibbs replied to James, with a soft smile before flashing a quick cute wink at him.

Ray looked at James as he walked away then quickly back at Tibbs, “Papito? You’ve just called me that in that email you sent me the other night…”

“It’s different between me and James though, you already know we can’t do what we used to do together anymore, Ray,” Tibbs replied to Ray.

“I know… it’s _just_ … I almost thought you wanted to keep this thing going between me and you,”

“Papito is just playful talk to me, once I drop my boxers or scream out daddy in the bedroom along with that when we’re around each other again is when you should worry,”

Ray chuckled at Tibbs, Ray still thought that Tibbs was the most fucking adorable guy that he ever came across, “So, how are you gonna bring me on the Normandy with James there? He didn’t seem like he liked me that much,”

“Oh, James will warm up to you, just give him a little time, Ray,” Tibbs replied to Ray.

Tibbs escorted Ray onto the Normandy once their conversation was over, a couple of moments later. A couple of heads turnt while the both of them walked to the galactic transportation bus, a familiar few being Commander Leo Shepard and Steve Cortez—they were venturing out together while Ray and Tibbs were going back to the Normandy.

Ray made sure that he didn’t touch Tibbs in front of them, it was all eating at him deep down inside. Ray and Tibbs haven’t seen each other in a hot minute, so feelings were still there—not too much with Tibbs, but more so with Ray.

****

A bit concerned, Steve turnt to Leo Shepard, “James didn’t look so happy coming back to Normandy, I think Ray and him finally met each other,”

“Yup, I’ve heard that Tibbs and Ray used to date each other, I don’t know if that set him off or what, but hopefully they’ll all straighten things out with each other,” Leo replied to Steve.

“Yeah… hopefully,”

Leo and Steve walked together to the Silver Coast Casino at the Silversun Strip in the Citadel, there was nothing better than to go watch people lose all of their money, talk shit together, and laugh at everything. The Blackjack dealer came to work in an all black suit with a white tie, he noticed Steve and Leo sitting down off to the side while the players were all at the table engaging with him.

“Are you sure that you two gentlemen don’t want to join in on the festivities?” The well dressed Blackjack dealer asked both Steve and Leo.

“Yes, we’re sure, neither of us have the gift of excelling at gambling, we’re just here to watch,” Steve replied to the well dressed Blackjack dealer.

“Yeah, what he said,” Leo Shepard chimed in along with Steve, holding Steve’s hand with a smile.

“Hey, hey, hey—I know that look… we’re not gonna do it, alright? We don’t have enough money for that,”

“Come oooon, Steve, for me?”

“No can do, Shepard, you’ll clean us both out of funds,”

Leo Shepard folded his arms and pouted at Steve, “Don’t you give me that begging puppy dog look, no means no,” Steve continued to Leo.

Leo Shepard groaned out of frustration and disappointment, “Fine, we can watch then,”

The first game of Blackjack started once both Steve and Leo’s conversation ended and all the players were ready to get started. Steve and Leo began to get closer to each other, touching each other, Leo putting his hand on Steve’s thigh—rubbing it and making him blush while Steve was slowly rubbing Leo’s crotch under the table making Leo quietly moan a few times.

“Is that some sorta way to make up for not letting me hit the slots, Steve?” Leo Shepard asked Steve.

Steve smiled at Leo in response, “That’s not actually what I had in mind, but hey—feel free to assume,”

Leo Shepard chuckled then rolled his eyes, “Obvious bullshit hahaha you know I’m telling the truth,”

“Yeah, you keep thinking that, Romeo,” Steve sarcastically replied to Leo Shepard.

“Keep feeling me up like that and I’ll make you my Juliet, boy,”

“Ooh, sounds exciting, why not do it in front of everyone, Shepard?”

“Nope, too many people, let’s do it back on the Normandy later, alright Steve?”

Steve chuckled, “You big chicken,”

“Fried up and ready to go for your pleasure,” Leo Shepard replied to Steve.

“Oh god, that was cheesy, don’t quit your day job,” Steve told to Leo Shepard.

“Where do you think I get it from?”

“Vega? That sounded like something that he would say to Tibbs, just stick to looking pretty for me and don’t even try to be funny,”

“Same to you, big man,”

****

Tibbs came back to the Normandy with James and Ray, Ray chose to let the two lovers have time to themselves for a little while. Tibbs felt that it was only right to let James process everything that went down earlier between him and Ray.

“So, James, you really thought that I was gonna let Ray touch me earlier?” Tibbs asked James.

“Uh, well, no—I mean, yeah no, I didn’t,” James replied to Tibbs.

“Come on, you can be honest with me,”

James paused for a bit, sighed, then turnt back to Tibbs, “Well, he did take you into that room all alone, I was worried pup,”

“About?” Tibbs asked James.

“I was worried that he would take you away from me, I didn’t wanna lose you,” James replied to Tibbs.

“Look, _papito_ , you don’t have anything to worry about, okay? Ray is just an old friend to me now, we’re not gonna do anything together, okay?”

“…okay, but don’t let Ray take you somewhere all alone again,”

“Okay, James,”

James reached out to Tibbs for a hug and Tibbs accepted it, “I love you, pup, I just have these moments, I can’t help it,”

“I know, I know—I’m not going anywhere though, even Ray knows that, he saw it in your face when you came to check up on me,”

Though James and Ray didn’t quite get along in their first encounter, both of their personalities were pretty similar. Ray would also have moments with Tibbs like James when he would be jealous yet it was Ray who snuck around with KT behind Tibbs’ back. James isn’t the cheating type, but after being with Ray, it was something that stayed in the back of Tibbs’ mind that he kept hidden pretty deep. Tibbs kept telling himself that James would be different and so far James has proven just that.

****

Shepard and James decided to hang out together and walk around the Normandy while Tibbs and Steve stayed behind at the shuttle. Steve wanted to check in with Tibbs to see how everything was going with him and James. Tibbs being unfamiliar with the inner workings of the Normandy, just watched Steve work on the shuttle while he handed over any spare tools or parts that Steve needed.

“So, Tibbs, how are things going with Vega and Ray?” Steve asked Tibbs, unsure whether to ask that first, but also unsure on what else to talk about.

“They hated each other at first, but they seem to be alright now,” Tibbs replied to Steve.

“Is Ray gonna come to Leo’s party, y’know, Shepard’s party?”

“I dunno, I’ve gotta ask him first, we could probably lie to him and say that James isn’t gonna come—just so they won’t kill each other,”

“I take it that Ray would still find out,”

“Probably,”

Steve and Tibbs got along pretty well, if it wasn’t the ship that they were talking about—it was Tibbs and James’ relationship as a means of support whenever Tibbs needed to reach out to someone. Steve let Tibbs watch him work on the shuttle, knowing that Tibbs had never came across technology this advanced—I mean, Dr. Emil had advanced gear but the Normandy… that was a whole different ball game compared to RST.

“I can’t believe EDI and Joker got together, Joker flirts with Shepard so much that I always have to watch him through the cameras or when I’m around him,” Steve told Tibbs, shaking his head after.

“Joker’s straight?” Tibbs asked Steve.

“I honestly think he goes wherever the wind blows at times, maybe pansexual, I guess, I dunno,”

“He is dating a robot, so I… _guess_ that counts as pan,”

“Your unsureness is cute, but hey whatever makes Joker happy… just as long as he doesn’t get too carried away with the flirting, it’s cool,”

“Yeah, hopefully he cools it,”

Joker walked into the shuttle, “Cools what?”

Steve chuckled, “What are you doing all the way down here? Shouldn’t you be piloting the ship?”

“EDI’s got it covered for me, she cloned herself to give me a little break,” Joker replied to Steve.

Steve and Tibbs looked at each other and shook their heads, Steve both amused and a tad annoyed at Joker’s nosiness—it felt as if Joker had only came in to find out who and what Steve and Tibbs were talking about.

“So, what’s the deal, Joker? What brought you here?” Steve asked Joker, with his arms folded.

“Just checking in with you guys, that’s all, I see you’re working on the shuttle again so I guess I’ll go back,” Joker replied to Steve.

Steve stopped Joker before he could go back upstairs, “On second thought, me and Tibbs are gonna go hang out next weekend, you wanna come with us?”

“Well… I am a pilot, _but_ … I guess I could get EDI to clone herself again to take over the ship for me,” Joker replied to Steve, with slight reluctance at first.

“Oh, and another thing, Joker? Stop flirting with Leo, that’s my Commander-in bed, okay?”

“Sure, but it’s not flirting, I would be in his bed right now if it were flirting,”

“Ha! Like you’d ever have the chance, get back up there to EDI, why don’t you?”

“Can I take Tibbs with me, Steve? I know he’s bored out here, aren’t you?”

“Why? Me and him were bonding, again… get back up there to EDI, she’s lonely,”

Joker chuckled then walked off, going to the elevator instead of the steps, he had just remembered that his legs weren’t quite ready for those yet. Steve and Tibbs stayed downstairs in the shuttle, having some more homo-bromo talk while James and Shepard went on a mission. Tibbs would miss James every time that he would go out there with Shepard, he didn’t want James to get hurt but unfortunately that came with the job.

****

Meanwhile, James and Leo ( _Shepard_ ) finished going up against the reapers with Liara and Garrus—they all planned out together how they were going to get the entire team to group up and take all of the reapers out for good.

“I miss Tibbs, Shepard,” James told Leo.

“I know, _I know_ , we’ll be back soon, okay?” Leo replied to James, rubbing him on the shoulder to calm his nerves.

“I wonder how Esteban is treating him, y’know, I don’t want my pup to be corrupted or anything when I get back,”

“I’m 100% sure that Steve isn’t doing anything of the sort, James,”

“He better not or I’m kicking his ass,”

Liara chuckled softly to herself, “You two are quite the couple, both of you long for each other when you’re away from each other for only a millisecond, are you all okay?”

“Yeah, it’s this weird thing called love, Liara—things are a little different on Earth than here in the alien world,” James replied to Liara.

“You mean outer space, James?” Leo asked James, attempting to lighten the mood a bit.

James smirked at Leo ( _Shepard_ ), “You know exactly what I meant, loco, I’m dumb—I don’t have a massive vocabulary like you,” playfully winking at Shepard shortly after saying that.

“Awww, come ‘mere, you big baby… Tibbs is alright, Steve told me so, they’re just having girl… I mean, homo-bromo talk as Tibbs calls it, y’know?” Leo ( _Shepard_ ) replied to James, hugging him.

“You guys gonna order pizza when we get back on the Normandy? I’m starving, man,” James asked Leo ( _Shepard_ ), Liara, and Garrus.

“Make sure you give James his bottle with that too, Shepard, alright?” Garrus told Leo, joking around to annoy James.

“Shut up over there, alright?!” James bit back at Garrus.

Garrus blow a raspberry at James while Leo ( _Shepard_ ) and Liara shook their heads at both James and Garrus and laughed.

The four of them got onto the Normandy and went back home together, _boy_ was it a joy for them to be back again with the people they’ve held dear to them.

As the Normandy made it back at their home base in outer space, James and Leo ( _Shepard_ ) regrouped with both Steve and Tibbs. Tibbs was very happy to see James and the two of them hugged and kissed each other, Leo went back to Steve and the two of them caught up on what went down on the mission along with their own kisses and hugs. Garrus and Liara went back to their work stations.

“Missed me, pup?” James asked Tibbs, holding him and playing with his hair.

“Yeah, papi, glad you’ve made it back in one piece, I was kinda worried after hearing that you were going up against the reapers,” Tibbs replied to James.

“Aww, well hey, I’m back now—I won’t have to go on another mission for a week now, Shepard’s getting other people to go to the next mission with him this time… we can stay here and do all kinds of fun cute stuff together,” James told Tibbs, playfully and lovingly smacking his cheek shortly after.

“Awesome! Oh, and James?” Tibbs replied to James.

“Yeah?”

“Can Ray join us? I want you guys to hang out more, he’s not gonna touch me or anything,”

James sighed and almost became reluctant to answer, “…Uh… sure,”

“Hey, Ray’s not too bad once you get to know him more,” Tibbs replied to James.

“No more storage rooms, Tibbs,”

“Aww, you big baby, that was only one time and we didn’t even do anything,”

“I know, I know, _just_ … never mind, Ray can come with us,”

James really wanted it to just be the two of them together, no Ray, no team—just him and Tibbs conquering the world together and all. Tibbs wanted James to get used to Ray and to know that Ray wasn’t trying to replace James, he was just here to check on Tibbs and catch up while finding a new home on the Normandy with him.

“I’m sorry that I keep doing that,” James told Tibbs.

“Hey, _hey_ , I get it, it looked suspicious at first, I get it—just give Ray a chance, he’s a good man, but he’s not gonna take me away from you, I promise,” Tibbs replied to James.

“I’m sorry that I’ve doubted you,”

Tibbs held James’ hand, “ _Shhh_ , it’s okay,” hugging him shortly after, “You’re gonna love Ray too, we’ll find something really fun to do together on our down time, papito,”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> -I have really struggled getting the fourth chapter done, I've had three copies of it and it never turnt out the way I wanted it to be... so I took time away from working on this fic to work on my Bloodshot fics and watching the Mafia 3 cutscenes instead and this became a lot easier for me to get done.
> 
> -Just super, super happy to have gotten this chapter done. The fifth chapter should be here next week, hopefully, or earlier than that... just depends on if it comes out the way I want it to.


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